A Spokane County sheriff’s detective faces felony charges of domestic violence and second-degree assault after allegedly using a flashlight to hit his girlfriend and another man at a drunken party last Sunday near Odessa.
Detective Dale T. Toliver, 46, had been drinking around a campfire at a barn party when he saw his girlfriend get into a pickup truck with another man, according to court documents filed in Lincoln County. Toliver allegedly opened the driver’s side door and hit her with the 13-inch, heavy-duty flashlight.
The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office contacted Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich on Monday about the pending criminal investigation, but he didn’t place Toliver on administrative leave until paperwork was complete Tuesday, Knezovich said.
The other man, identified as Joseph “Mike” Melder in court records, got out of the truck to try to defuse the situation, but the fight escalated when Toliver hit him in the face with the flashlight, documents say. Their struggle continued until Melder hit Toliver with a stick and Toliver fell to the ground.